About couples of 3 and other wishes
by Elizabehta Beilschmidt
Summary: Hikaru and Kaoru loved her so much, and at the same time. They were afraid of rejection, that's true, but they were more afraid of being alone in their little world once again. Even so, they risked it and asked Haruhi out. "Would you go out with us? Both. At the same time." (This works as a stand alone fic, but could upload a sequel)
1. About couples of 3 and other wishes

Well, this is one of my very first fanfiction. Now I'm trying to a)rewrite them (so they won't be so **cringey,** ugh!) and b)translate them to english.

This took me just _so long_ to translate not only because of my amateur skills in spanish-english translation; but also I took this opportunity to rewrite and fix some really cringey stuff.

I remind you that **english is not my first language** so please be kind. Any mistakes or suggestions you see, please tell me and I'll do my best to fix them. Thanks!

 **Ouran is not mine, I don't get any money with this.**

* * *

 _ **About couples of 3 and other wishes**_

Haruhi has never been a complicated girl, she preferred simple things. She enjoyed hunting sales at the supermarket and live her commoner's life at peace.

Well, as peaceful as it can be having the Ouran Host Club as her best friends. Yes, she loved them and thought of them as her friends although they bother her more than she would like to. She treasured her time with them and today was no exception, not even when she had to cosplay as a greek goddess (obviously without the customers finding out her gender) and had to play scenes of mythology with the host, getting fangirl screams in the process.

She loved her normal and simple life, her normal days at school with the boys.

What she didn't know was how her relationship with them had changed. She was so dense that she still hadn't realized the way that even Kyoya looked at her from time to time when he wasn't writing down new additions to her debt on his notebook. Even Kyoya! Slowly, the petite girl has wrapped the most influential men in the country, and probably the world, around her finger. And that without counting guys like Kasanoda that weren't on the Host club.

But, let's not talk about that. This is about two lovers in particular, the Hitachiin twins. They both loved her but couldn't agree with who should get the girl, even if she would want them that is. They loved her, at the same time, and often fought because of that; but always hiding it from the other so as not to get in any troubles as the last time.

Haruhi would never love them both, they knew that. It was impossible to… have a couple with three people, it wouldn't work. On one hand, there was the moral part: society would not agree and they will be pointed at everyday; it would destroy Haruhi's dream to be a successful lawyer, they couldn't do that to her. On the other hand, it was themselves: Hikaru is very jealous and he couldn't even share his brother with other people (which are their _friends_ ), although he has been controlling it; otherwise, Kaoru, used to give up everything to his brother, to lie for him, and knew that Haruhi hated it. They knew it was difficult and would never work out.

That is if she chose them, of course, and if Haruhi would have a relationship with _two people at the same time_.

It was reckless, they knew, but they were so madly in love that every day it seemed a better idea, the best one. It wasn't about choosing between their brother or the love of their life anymore, about breaking a life-long friendship or losing her forever. They already do everything together, always found a way to do so. Why not take it further?

First, the did a few tests, just to be sure.

They took her to their house to introduce her to their parents, sitting together at the table and acting as normal as they could with her, trying if they could really do everything together; but Haruhi was the natural host and it went smoothly as usual.

Then, they went further and invited her to sleep in their house. They didn't try anything perverted, and of course they didn't tell Tamaki about it (but probably Kyoya knew everything), so it was just the three of them alone. They did not want to bug the King of the Host Club nor make fun of anyone nor take good pictures for Kyoya to sell to the best bidder; just them as the best friends they were. Haruhi, as oblivious as always, just went along and laughed with them. She wasn't disturbed by the fact of sharing a room. _Maybe she doesn't consider us as men_ , said Kaoru when they thought about their possibilities. They wanted to change that.

And then, at last, one day in their break at the host club when they didn't have any customers, they chatted with her as usual, as normal as possible, until they asked what they wanted to know.

"Say, Haruhi," said simultaneously, "would you go out with a host?" It's not that they wanted to encourage her to go out with any of them, they just wanted to know if she saw them a possible… partners? in the future. She thought a few seconds that were important while Hikaru and Kaoru were thankful that the other host were busy and weren't listening. "Well, I won't deny that I've thought about that sometime," she put a serious face, but they knew her and saw the small spark in her big, brown eyes, "but I can't think about that stuff right now. I need to study to keep my scholarship"

Translation: yes, she has thought about them in that kind of situation out of the Host Club stuff. And that means they had hope.

And for that, they chose to risk it. Haruhi has been always very understanding and mature in her decisions; is what they thought when the option of losing her friendship was obvious when they'll tell her their idea:

They wanted a relationship with her. They both, at the same time.

* * *

She didn't know why she was still here, on top of a ski slope lost somewhere in a mountain which name she couldn't pronounce but was like a type of cheese.

With a serious face, she tried to remember how she got there in the first place. She was peacefully making her father's dinner at home, when people in black clothes broke into her house, put her in a bag and pushed her inside a car that sped down the street. Nobody spoke to her and she stood very still, as she was used to, knowing it just has to be one of her host friends. _What a sense of humor_ , she thought bitterly when they finally got her out of the car (a limousine?) and shove her inside a… plane?

Okay, this was more than enough.

Freed from her bag, she took in her surroundings as her eyes grew used to the brightness as the flight attendants gave instructions in english. Great, she was in a private jet in her ugly "house clothes", in a _very_ bad mood, with the ones and only twins.

"What the _heck_ am I doing here?" she growled knitting her eyebrows and crossing her arms.

"We are taking you out this weekend!" said Hikaru. "What do you think?" asked Kaoru.

"And you need a private jet for 'going out'?" she rose an eyebrow, incredulous.

The trip ended up being a ski trip to a very high mountain (with a lot of dangerous cliffs, by the way) in a country which name they didn't want to tell her because "she'd want to turn around when she knew". They were positive that she wasn't used to travel by private jets to the other part of the world and she would throw a fit.

Commoners.

So, she was about to do something that'd hurt, a lot, because she already could see her becoming a giant snowball rolling down the hill.

"What are you doing, Haruhi?" asked Kaoru jumping above her head in his snowboard. They both went to a higher place, for experts. "Come one! It'll be fun!" said Hikaru flashing just beside her at top speed.

She eyed them with a little sweatdrop falling in the back of her head. She looked down again, where the silhouettes of the twins swirled gracefully, and for a second she thought it couldn't be half bad. She thought that maybe she wouldn't die.

She let go, knowing it was a very bad idea the moment she felt the wind hit the uncovered skin of her face. Yep, now she was positive she wouldn't make it alive. She closed her eyes expecting the snow in her mouth, and maybe other parts of her body as well, and the bruises that will come; but nothing happened at all, just the feeling of the unmerciful wind slowly dying away and other people's voices around.

She carefully opened her hazel eyes finding she was perfectly fine and alive at the end of the hill, people looking astonished and the twins laughing their heads off in the background. Of her, probably.

She snorted feeling her face hot and took off her skis before approaching her friends while avoiding the curious stares. She looked daggers at them when she got there and threw the skis at them.

"You should have seen your face!"

"You even closed your eyes!"

"It's not even funny", she said trying not to turn away and leave. "I could have died."

"But, why did you close your eyes? Is even more dangerous!"

"I don't know how did you dodge those people so fast with your eyes closed"

She glared at them, crossing her arms.

"Beginner's luck", they simply said and shrugged. Haruhi sighed again and slowly her face relaxed. She couldn't be angry with the for much longer, they were her friends. Her best friends.

"I think skiing is over for today", she said taking off her helmet. While untying her gloves, she noticed that the twins were strangely silent. Lifting her head, she looked at the weird glint in their eyes, but she was interrupted before she could ask. "What..?"

"If you don't wanna ski…", started Hikaru smiling, taking off his stuff and throwing it around. Strangely enough, someone appeared out of nowhere and took them elsewhere.

"...then….", said Kaoru with a smile as big as his brother's.

"Let's go sightseeing!", they shouted.

 _Oh, mother... ,_ thought the girl, already feeling tired for the things she was going to be forced to do.

* * *

She was literally tired. She couldn't feel her feet, her head was pounding like crazy and she was going to faint sometime soon. Her bag, which wasn't really her bag but some clothes the twins have lent her, was filled with more presents for her father than she ever has got him before, and souvenirs from that place (which name she had finally learned and fought with the twins because of that) that she couldn't close it properly.

She just wanted to get a shower and sleep. Nothing else mattered. And because of that she didn't realize she was being guided to an hotel room, filled with luxuries that she didn't look at, but just _one_ room. For them.

She neither saw when the twins put two beds together to make a queen sized one and hers was right next to it or that the clothes she chose weren't her too big t-shirt and old pjs' pants. Neither saw the anxious faces of the twins. It is true that they were acting strange all the way through the town, but they always got to distract her in time until she forgot about it.

On the other side, Hikaru looked at his brother Kaoru, who nodded. Now was the time. They would bet everything they had and risk their relationship with Haruhi tonight. They were scared, very scared, but they knew they had to do it and knowing Haruhi it'd end well one way or another. She always took things with a calm face. They had to believe it.

They waited until she finished and when they saw her in the pajamas they chose for her, towelling her hair, they rose from their seats and sighed. _It's now or never_ , they thought.

"Haruhi", said Kaoru softly. She looked at them with fatigue in her eyes.

"Sit down, please", said Hikaru pointing at a chair close to the beds. They sat in ones in front of her.

"Did something happen?", she asked getting worried and trying to put the tiredness aside for them. She frowned slightly thinking about what could they want.

"Relax, it isn't something bad", Kaoru took a mouthful of air and sighed. "Haruhi," he could mutter with a serious face, "you are very important to us, not just for being the only one who can tell us apart, but also for being our very first true friend."

"You make our days brighter and when we can't see you we feel like something's missing. We don't know exactly when the way we see you changed, but before we could realize it we needed you, even more than we need each other." Hikaru continued.

"When we found out how we felt about you we knew it wasn't going to end well."

"We love you, Haruhi."

She widened her eyes, surprised, but kept silent and let them continue.

"If one of us went for it, the other would suffer."

"We were so scared, Haruhi", confessed Kaoru and she believed it. Believed all of it. Such… uncovered faces like theirs could not tell lies.

"That's why we… we thought about this." This was the important part.

"Haruhi," Kaoru breathed deeply and looked at his brother. He nodded. "Would you go out with us?", they said fixing their eyes to the big hazel of the frozen girl in front of them. "Both", completed Kaoru. "At the same time", finished Hikaru closing his eyes and waiting for rejection.

But nothing happened.

Startled, he opened his eyes only to find Haruhi in the same place, frozen like a statue and speechless. What could she be thinking? Would she hate them for proposing such a crazy idea? She was very logical, following rules all the time. She knew what was right and what wasn't.

But there was no reaction at all. That was a bad signal, right? He turned to Kaoru, distressed, who probably wore the same face as him, and then looked to Haruhi when they heard her chair. She rose in silence, murmured something like she was going to sleep and went under the covers of her bed without saying another word.

Astonished, and a bit hurt for her lack of reaction, the twins stared at the floor knowing the obvious answer. No. A big, fat no in bold letters.

Hikaru closed his eyes trying to contain the tears that fought to be free and got up slowly with his hands fisted; then he went to his side of the bed in equal silence. Kaoru sighed and turned off the lights, going to the bed and allowing the weight of the moment get to him. Then knew he wouldn't get any sleep that night.

He sighed again, but this time it came choked in a strangled sob that he could hide in time before the darkness and quietness of the night gave him away. He heard then another sob, but this time it was from his brother.

He looked at his side and there he was, curled up and hiding his face on the pillow so as not to be heard crying. Because he was crying, he knew. He was his brother and knew what the other was feeling. He rolled to him and carefully hugged him, feeling his pain and trying to soothe it. They had failed and probably now Haruhi wouldn't want anything to do with them, would treat them differently.

On the other hand, Haruhi was lying with her back turned to them, eyes wide open, but that was something they didn't know. Her heart beating fast and her brain repeating what had just happened again and again. Slowly processing what they had proposed, her thick head realizing why they had brought her here in the first place or why they were acting so weird today...They were nervous.

She focused on the matter at hand. A couple of three? They really got to share everything or adapt everything to fit them all and enjoy it together.

She thought about it some more; for example, the way they looked at her, the way they treated her or how they behaved that day. The twins loved her and most likely they knew that it wasn't an easy thing, neither for her nor them.

She wasn't blind, she knew how _illegal_ this could be. It was not well seen by society; they would be glared at, pointed at, and they'd try to hurt them or break them up. The boys were heirs of such a big company, this could bring their ruin. And there was their parents, of course. What would Ranka say about this? She was so scared.

But then she thought that to hell with who cared what other people do with their lives, who they love. Because yes, she loved them. She was afraid and probably was going to be the hardest thing in her life but she wanted to at least try. It was so long since she stopped seeing them as just friends, but she didn't knew what to do with these new feelings inside, so she tried to ignore them; but today has been an eye opener.

She turned and looked at the silhouettes of her friends in the bed at her side. Were they sleeping? If that was the case then she could tell them tomorrow… Wait, what was that? Sounded like a… sob?

She stood in her bed, putting away the blankets, and listened carefully to confirm that it was sob indeed. She silently got up and approached the twin's bed just to face the most… heartwarming? thing in the world. Could be. She sadly smiled but slightly amused; the twins, her best friends and who she was willing to try this couple of three, were crying in the arms of the other. They looked like children, and that was what they were beyond the jokes, smirks and everyday pranks; those were gone and now there was just their bare hearts and pure feelings.

She walked closer to their bed and gently caressed their faces, watching with newfound eyes under the moonlight that leaked from the window, and receiving their watery eyes with a content smile. The boys stared at her with hope shining brightly in their eyes and she nodded still smiling.

Full of happiness, the twins jumped to her and hugged her like they used to, so the girl could be shared and everyone had their part. Remaining tears run down their cheeks while they smiled with joy.

"Haruhi...", whispered Kaoru full of emotion.

"Yes, here I am", she said and they knew she meant something more than just physically.

"Come here", and Hikaru dragged her between them onto the double bed, Kaoru pulling the blanket over her as well keeping her warm and comfy.

Her smile grew bigger when she felt their arms around her, Hikaru's head in her chest and Kaoru's somewhere between her shoulder and hair. She lifted a hand to caress Hikaru's soft hair while closing her eyes to sleep peacefully at last.

"Haruhi," whispered Hikaru a bit too softly for him. His face was so red that Haruhi internally laughed amused by the sight. "Can I…. Can I kiss you?"

She froze not knowing what to say, keeping the stare in place, but nodded a few seconds later. Carefully, he approached her lips and gently touched them with his feeling like this was what he has been waiting for all his life. It was sweet and warm, and everything he needed.

Kaoru watched in silence. He wasn't going to hide the jealousy he felt of his brother; knowing this was Haruhi's first kiss (with a man) and there wasn't _two_ of that for the twins.

With a "devilish brothers" trademark smile, he came up with an idea to have something "new" of Haruhi for both brothers. While waiting for them to finish he sniffed Haruhi scent in her neck, enjoying the warmth.

"Ah…", he heard them sigh and admired their blushed happy cheeks. He then thought that maybe this was a bad idea and he should forfeit and leave them be, ad he intended in the beginning; but smiled instead knowing that hey would break up if he did because they knew how much he cared for both.

"Kaoru…", Haruhi said watching him and suspecting his thoughts. She lifted a hand to his hair and pulled to reach his mouth more easily, wanting to give equal attentions to both brothers.

She felt again his soft warmth, so similar to Hika's… but kinda different. It wasn't better or worse, just different. And she so _loved_ it. Haruhi happily kissed the boy and let him feel her love and acceptance of this relationship; but something wet distracted her and a slight bite in her lower lip made her blush wildly. She opened her eyes and rolled them when she saw the devilish glint in the golden eyes of her now boyfriend. She smiled, letting him in nonetheless.

A new world of sensations disclosed before her, making her think " _oh, so that's why everyone's so obsessed with this"_. It was even warmer and hot than before with Hikaru; more rash and demanding, but soft and tingly and _nice._ She loved it too.

When they finally got apart she was flying far away from there, floating like a feather. Hikaru demanded her attention and trapped her swollen lips with her own taking advantage of her absent state of mind from Kaoru's kiss. Without asking permission, he introduced his tongue and attacked her mouth mercilessly but kindly, not wanting to take this somewhere uncomfortable for both and making sure that she could end it if she desired.

Haruhi had to admit that this was _way_ different from Kaoru. More enthusiastic, rash, fast and intense; making her realise that Hikaru had been wanting this from way long back. While Kaoru was more relaxed and controlled, Hikaru wanted her all and devoured her whole with his lips. And as she surrender her body to the boy, she felt her mind abandon her right there and she couldn't make even a coherent thought at the moment. Her head was spinning out of control when they finally got apart and she could not feel the bites and kisses all around her neck and shoulders. So many caresses, so much love, that it was choking her. And it came doubled tonight.

Again one of the brothers captured her lips (Kaoru, she imagined by the slight calmness in the movement against them) while the other was kissing the sensitive skin of her throat. For a brief moment, she wondered if that'll leave marks. But, well she will worry about that tomorrow.

* * *

The next morning, Haruhi woke up to sun rays hitting her right in the eyes. She frowned and opened them feeling _really_ hot, too much, and couldn't even move.

When she saw the sleeping faces of the twins, one on her chest and the other next to her head, she remembered everything that happened the previous night. She blushed and was about to scream, but stopped just in time for as not to wake the brothers. She sighed.

She watched them sleep for a while without worrying about the hour. Their faces were so relaxed and calm, a bit red by the heat, and a cute smile on their lips. It was such a contrast with the tears from last night when they thought that she despised them for asking if she was interested in them. They looked like scared kids, but that's exactly what they essentially were: children. In so many ways. Specially in the emotions management.

She felt someone stirr in his sleep and wake up. Kaoru, she knew instantly because he was always the first one to do it. She rolled her head and kissed his cheek softly to greet him. His eyes were bright and showed so much happiness that her heart skipped a beat.

"Good morning", he whispered before kissing her in a chaste kiss on the lips.

"Good morning", she smiled. "Shall we wake him up?", Haruhi looked down to the redhead on her chest. Kaoru nodded.

Haruhi gently grabbed a handful of his hair and tugged, but no reaction came from the boy. She pulled with a bit more strength but still nothing. She sighed. Haruhi knew that Hika was a heavy sleeper, but this? She glanced at Kaoru expecting further instructions, but she found him pointing at his own lips, which were arched in a smile, and his eyes shining with mischief. She rolled her eyes but still bowed down to press her lips softly on the other twin's ones. (Not) Surprisingly, the boy was awake and trapped her there not wanting to let go, a very Chesire-like smile on his face.

Haruhi glared briefly at him but let it slide. She was just too happy to fake annoyance long enough.

And then, because neither of them really wanted to get up, they stayed in bed for a while sharing hugs, kisses and cuddling nonstop, enjoying each other's presence and new found love. Not even the heat seemed to bother them.

"Room service!", said a voice through the door after a few knocks. Before they could move to get up, a maid opened said door and entered the room pushing a cart with some food on it. "I brought lunch as you ordere…"

Her voice faded when she looked up from her carefully placed plates and cups and finally saw the twins and Haruhi all cuddly in bed, _really_ close (closer than anyone else in the room would be comfortable with), and the poor flushed girl in the middle.

"Eh…", the embarrassed maid managed to say. "I'll… I'll leave you alone now… Yes, I'm going." And the she literally _ran_ away, closing the room's door behind. Haruhi, Hikaru and Kaoru looked at each other before exploding in laughter at the absurd situation. Kaoru mentally made a note to give the maid a generous tip before they left this afternoon.

"I guess it's time to eat, right?", said Haruhi when her breathing slowed down.

They helped her down the bed and put her between them, as usual, before pulling the cart closer. Without warning Kaoru grabbed Haruhi in for a tight hug, which Hikaru joined, making successfully a Haruhi sandwich. They laughed again softly, just being silly and happy, letting the joy of finally being together flow through their bodies.

But there was still an important question: What would they said to the rest of the Host Club?

Well, we'll leave that for another moment.


	2. Haruhi, do you know what polyamory is?

_So... yeah._  
 _A thousand years later, I come with a translation/revision of this fic, which is a continuation of the OT3. Ouran is like, so far from my actual self, that sometimes I wonder why the hell I even bother with this fandom anymore._

 _But the posibilities are endless! I just love this OT3 and they were meant to be together if this stupid monogamic normative didn't exist in romance._

 _Maybe full of silly mistakes. Will fix later._

* * *

It is true that she had accepted this relationship of three people that day at the hotel. But she was not going to deny that she was afraid, very afraid, and nervous.

At that time she had not thought much about the consequences that relationship would have on them. What if it ends up not working at all? What if that dark stain remained in their memories and then they could never look each other in the face anymore? She was afraid to break that fraternal relationship that so obvious in the twins if it did not go well and she was afraid to break that friendship between them.

Every time she let out some of her fears they would simply smile and say that everything would be fine, but she was sure they feared that almost as much as she did; that they had it in mind even before they proposed it to her.

But the evidence was clear, and _that_ they could not hide it: the fights between the brothers (although they did not become _fights_ as in physical ones) had increased, usually over who fed Haruhi first (and then she ended up eating alone) or who was holding her hand this time. She could not help but feel uncomfortable being there in the middle of the arguments and could not stand being the reason for them.

Several times during the week they had been dating, she had thought they should finish this, she wanted to tell them that she could not stand it anymore to see them fight so much because of her or that she did not want them to do something that they would all regret later. But then she then saw their faces and listened to them apologize without her telling them anything and she did not have the heart to do it. She forgave them too quickly, as much as they forgave each other, and gave another chance to this peculiar relationship.

Besides, she thought in those moments, it's normal for newly-made couples to fight each other or even being on the verge of breaking up; she had read it in the "girls' magazines" that she was forced to possess thanks to her friend Mei. She did not want to remember how she had ended reading those ... things full of glitter and edited images of celebrities without clothes; but on the cover of one she read an article about complicated relationships and her hands moved by themselves. But when she started reading it she had to read it whole. She read the "clues to know if your relationship will last" and they fit in some but not all, so she was not going to deny that it worried her.

 _It's just that we're not a normal relationship_ , she reminded herself when she realized she was making a fool of herself in her room with the magazine in her hands. She sighed and threw her head back, hands on her back trying to ease the pain of being bent over the magazine for so long. She wanted to do something to end those doubts. She already had too many and she felt that that could be bad for them. Was she regretting it? Maybe now, after her mind had cooled and her logical reasoning had surfaced, did it seem horrible to her?

No, not horrible, she thought. It was not horrible or _bad_. They loved each other and there should be nothing wrong with that. She closed her eyes remembering the happy faces of her best friends and now boyfriends ( _boyfriends,_ still not used to it) when she accepted that night, she remembered their smiles free of malice, and felt she wanted to see them again. If possible every day. She felt that she would like to be the cause of their happiness and their smiles.

She blushed slightly at that thought. What the hell was wrong with her? Before she did not give two thoughts to that kind of thing and now she could not get it out of her head. Neither the new sensations, nor the feelings that they had awakened in her, or their kisses. Unconsciously she brought her fingers to her lips and remembered Hikaru and Kaoru once more.

She sighed once more.

"Haruhi ~," she heard the door open followed by the voice of Ranka, her father. That's right, her father! They still had not said anything about the three of them, they had not found the opportunity yet.

"Hi dad!" she shouted from her room sighing one last time before heading to the kitchen and heating the food she had made for both.

"What's for dinner, honey?" Ranka said appearing with her heels in her hands at the kitchen door.

"Stew with rice." She said, facing the pots while stirring the stew. She turned off the fire and took off her apron, turning around to find her father staring at her and with his head cocked to the side. "There's something wrong?"

Ranka said nothing and looked at her a little more closely. Haruhi, his Haruhi, was strange today. He could not say what was 'wrong' exactly or point at something in particular; she was just different. Since when was she different? He could not remember the time when she had changed, but _there was_ an obvious change. Was it her look? Or her face? Or the way she carried herself?

"Haruhi, are you using a cream or something?" He said suddenly, interrupting something she was saying. "There's something different about you today."

Haruhi looked at him strangely and thought about his words. No, she had not done any of that. She shook her head and turned to serve the food in two plates, listening to the gentle steps of her father go to his room, probably to change clothes.

She finished serving the food and took it to the dining room with her mind still filled with all the thoughts that tormented her lately. She heard someone hum a melody and assumed it was her father, but at the same time she heard the sound of the shower turning on, so it was impossible to hear the sound so clearly if it was from inside the shower.

Blushing as she had never done, she realized that it was _her_ who was singing. Haruhi never sang, she found it meaningless and a waste of time; and besides, she did not know how to sing well. Scratch that, she did not know how to sing. Period.

Then, why now did she start to do that? She only felt happy, like when she finished all homework in record time and had nothing else to do; or when she got the highest grade of her class.

No, it was something different. Like everything in her life in the last week. She tried to remember what had led her to hum while serving the food, but couldn't come up with anything.

In the end, it was just felt like doing it.

* * *

Again the twins had lied to her. It had already become clear to her that even if they went out together they were not going to stop making jokes on her and they were going to make fun of her at any given moment. Of course, by now she knew the tiny differences in their laughs and could tell in more depth when they were trying to cheer her up or were messing with her. But she still had a lot to learn about them, though.

Going back to the present, Haruhi was now locked in the Hitachiin mansion with a view of a hundred? or so dresses and outfits that Yuzuha had prepared for her. They told her they were going to have a snack at their house and the girl thought it would be to play whatever it was with them, as usual with the twins; but when she arrived she could no longer escape from the painted claws of the older woman .

She sighed for the umpteenth time, redirecting her thoughts to what was worrying her in the last days: how they were going to tell their parents. Haruhi was not stupid, she knew how rich families worked, the system so ... medieval of arranged marriages. Who knows if the twins already had intendeds that she didn't know of. A pinch of jealousy attacked her by surprise, but she was smarter than that and suppressed it with haste. It was useless to worry about it right now.

"Haruhi, baby, how are you feeling?" She heard Yuzuha's melodious, caramel-like voice pulling her out of her thoughts. She looked at her for a few seconds in silence without deciphering what she said. "The dress," she added, looking at her with a diminishing smile, "Are you uncomfortable? Do they fit too loosely? Too tightly? Itchy?"

Haruhi smiled slightly and answered with the sincerity that characterizes her.

"It stings a little on the back," she turned around and pointed to the area what bothered her.

"I knew that the fabric would not be right there. But of course, I had to get carried away by my assistants. When I see them, I'll tell them that …"

Haruhi disconnected then from the speech and looked out the window absently. She really did not care about putting on Mrs. Hitachiin's clothes, she had become accustomed in the first place to being taken from one place to another thanks to those of the club, and now to the intensity and passion that the woman applied to her work. In a way it reminded her of her mother, since in the few memories she had of her, and what Ranka had told her, she enjoyed her work and used to talk enthusiastically about her cases on the jury.

"Hey, Haruhi."

"Are you bored?"

She turned to face the twins, who looked at her somewhat sadly. She knew they were worried that she was not having fun, so she smiled at them and said:

"No, do not worry. In a way I've gotten used to this," she said glancing at the huge amount of sets and dresses on hangers at her side. They smiled in response and Kaoru got behind her to start removing the dress while Hikaru chose the next dress with her mother.

"I know something worries you," Kaoru whispered in her ear as she took off the ribbon and unbuttoned the buttons one by one. "Do not try to hide it from us."

She sighed again.

"I don't know what we are going to tell her." She did not say anything else since she knew that Kaoru would understand her.

"I understand," he nodded. "We have to think of something. I think mom is suspecting something's happening already."

Haruhi nodded at Yuzuha, but before she looked back at the window she felt Kaoru's lips on her neck for a few seconds, so fast that the others in the room had not seen them. She listened to his soft giggle as he finished undoing all the buttons, making her smile in response.

Meanwhile, Yuzuha had seen them. Of course. Did they think they can hide things from their own mother? They can't. A mother knows everything about their children. So one of her sons had become a little man and had a girlfriend, huh? In any other situation she would be hurt that they did not say anything to her. Or she wouldn't like the girl in question. But it was Haruhi and she knew her very well. Of course she approved! She was perfect for her children, she always knew what to do with them, she could tell them apart, she made them happy. She would be proud if she ever called herself her mother, wanting her as a new daughter in the family for _ages_.

"This one, mom?" She heard the voice of her other son next to her raising a new dress. She nodded and they proceeded with the torture ... I mean, with the dress testing session of the new season.

* * *

They were on a break already more than halfway to the ... session and Haruhi had gone to the bathroom for a moment to splash water on her face. When she comes out what is her surprise finding the only person she did not want to be alone with for the time being. Yuzuha smiled to reassure her as she looked so tense.

"You have nothing to worry about," she said softly without dropping the smile. She pulled away from the wall on which she was leaning on and faced her directly. "I know everything."

The girl tensed on the spot, but said nothing.

"And I approve."

Haruhi, who was waiting for her to ask for explanations or to tell her that she was angry or something around those lines, could not help but drop a "What?" in response. She did not know what to feel at that moment. Surprise, stupefaction, embarrassment at being discovered so soon or nervousness before the conversation. It was a hard pick.

"Calm down," she took her hand and looked at her straight in the eyes. "You're a great girl, how could I not love you?"

Haruhi blushed slightly, but kept her eyes on the woman. She was going to say something, but the mother's next words left her unsettled.

"You're perfect for my Kaoru."

 _Nani?_

Haruhi froze in the place and all the tranquility that she had managed to get vanished, giving way to nervousness and stress. She realized that Yuzuha believed that she was only dating one of her children. _Of course, it's the most normal thing in the world to think that's the situation here,_ she told herself. She wanted to giggle nervously as she removed her hand from the woman in front of her, not knowing what to say to get her out of her mistake.

 _Ma'am, you'll see ... I'm going out with your two children._ No, that definitely was not good for the conversation.

She looked to the side searching for something that could save her when he spotted the twins running towards them, their faces flushed and red with what she supposed was a mix of embarrassment and anxiety.

"Haruhi?" Yuzuha said without realizing that her children were coming. "Are you… Are you not dating Kaoru?

"You see ... I …" she did not know what to say. The other woman looked at her strangely, imagining a thousand scenarios. What the hell was going on here?

"Mom!" the twins shouted when they reached them, breathless.

"It's not what it looks like!"

"Well, maybe a little bit…"

"Haruhi …"

"And us…"

Between gasps for having run up there, Hikaru and Kaoru tried to explain the whole situation, too nervous to get anything coherent out of their mouths, making Yuzuha get more suspicious about the issue. She frowned slightly.

 _Oh shit._ Haruhi thought preparing for the worst.

"Calm down, boys," said the woman recovering the smile, but this one was not very reassuring. "Why don't we discuss it more calmly while having a nice cup of tea?"

They could only nod.

A while later, and after a calming warm tea, Kaoru stared at his cup dodging the analyzing eyes of Yuzuha, not knowing what to say. Hikaru looked out the window, too scared of his mother. And Haruhi looked alternately at those in the room, not sure if it was her place to start talking.

Yuzuha took a last sip and released the cup calmly on the table, causing the twins and Haruhi to jump. The woman sighed, still wondering what the hell was going on here, but ready to listen. She had imagined all sorts of things, from Haruhi not going out with her children but still having occasional sex, to having married one of them secretly and ending up pregnant. She liked none of those options and hoped it was nothing similar.

"Well, start explaining to me." She looked at them seriously. If they were doing something serious then she was going to respond in the same manner.

Haruhi, sitting between the boys, sighed and decided it was better for her to start. She felt each of her hands being taken by more larger and warmer ones. She smiled

"Mrs. Hitachiin," the woman did not ask her to call her by her name this time. Haruhi swallowed hard. "We know we should have told you before, but we did not find the right moment," the girl measured her words looking for the correct ones ."You see, I …"

"Yes?" She urged the girl to continue when she fell silent. She watched her cheeks turn slightly red and thought she looked lovely like that; but no, she had to focus. This was serious.

"I …" she was terrified of what she was going to say. That Yuzuha would go into a rage and separate them.

"She's going out with me." Hikaru said arming himself with courage. Haruhi and his brother looked at him surprised at the force with which his voice came out, as if he were not nervous or as if the hand that held Haruhi's was not shaking.

Yuzuha looked at him, surprised. Was that all? What was with the worried faces?

"And with me," Kaoru said seeing where Hikaru wanted to go. He smiled slightly as he pulled his hand away from Haruhi's and wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him.

As if they had planned it beforehand, Hikaru also released Haruhi to surround them both with his arm, snaking it behind her neck, leaning on the sofa where they were sitting.

Rendered speechless, the woman opened her eyes wide and leaned back slightly on her seat. What was this? Another joke from her children? If so, it was a very untasteful joke, because for a moment her heart stopped.

But no, it was not. She saw their eyes full of determination, their mouths closed tightly, waiting nervously for her response. Their hands slightly shaking. The small tremble of their jaws.

She also noticed the girl in question. Haruhi. There in the middle of the two she saw her with new eyes now knowing what she knew. She knew how the girl was, how important the rules were to her, how stubborn she was with her beliefs of what was wrong and right. What had led her to make such an _odd_ decision?

Ah, there she saw it; the spark in her eyes. A light that she had not seen before in her but that was now very clear in the chocolate of her eyes.

She loved them. For real.

"Hmm...," Yuzuha smiled sideways and relaxed in the seat. "I see," she laughed.

"Huh?" they said, confused.

"Calm down, I'm not going to do anything to you guys," she smiled nicer, but this time it was for real. The three who sat in front of her looked at each other with shock before relaxing in their seats.

"So ...?" Kaoru said cocking his head.

" ... what now?" added his brother.

Haruhi remained silent, staring at the woman and watching her closely.

"I'll be honest - I was not expecting this. It's ... well," she drank more tea and closed her eyes. "I don't know what to say," she opened them and fixed her eyes on her children and Haruhi, laughing mentally at the strength and fear with which they looked back at her. Yes, they had grown up and she had not even noticed. What she did know was that all this had been achieved by the young woman in front of her; that it was her who had freed them from those years in their own world, who taught them to love someone more than their twin brother. And for that she would always be grateful.

"Mrs. Hitachiin," Haruhi said again, but now with more confidence in the voice. The woman opened her mouth and Haruhi knew what she was going to say. "Yuzuha-san," she smiled a little when the other woman smirked at the correction. "I assure you that this decision has been made between the three of us and that… that we are going to fight so that this does work. Please, do not think it's a passing whim. I really ... I - I love them." She blushed as she said these words. She had never said "I love you" to anyone but her parents; and she hadn't been with the twins long enough to get used to it. She had never been very vocal about her feelings anyways.

Yuzuha smiled wider knowing that it was true. And that her children loved her in response. It was evident in those eyes that usually hid what they felt to the whole world so as not to get hurt.

"I understand," she said softly without removing the smile. "And it's fine by me. Have you already told Haruhi's father?"

"Well …" Hikaru looked away.

"No, not really," said his brother.

"We have not found the right moment yet," laughed the brunette getting slightly tense with the topic. "But we plan to tell him soon."

"I wish you good luck, guys," said the short-haired woman. "You have my full support."

"So…."

" ... is it really okay with you?" said the twins.

"Yeah," Yuzuha laughed. "How could it not be? I can see how happy you are. I could not take it from you like that as I know that it would only hurt you more. If she is what you want and you manage to share her, then I have no problem."

They sighed, relieved that the danger had been avoided.

"But tell me just one more thing," she put on her serious face. They swallowed loudly. "Tell me please that you are being careful?"

Haruhi turned red knowing what she meant (she would have been confused once upon a time, but she had already read many of Mei's magazines by then). Tuning out the world around her, Haruhi realized the reality of the subject. It was the one she had never thought about because she had never really had a boyfriend before and there was no need to ask herself about it.

She did not listen to what the twins babbled to their mother as she was absorbed in her thoughts. By now she was informed about all of the steps of a relationship. And was afraid of what she was discovering.

* * *

She couldn't get these thoughts out of her head no matter how much she wanted to; she could not help but pay unhealthy attention when they talked about it on television, in the streets, on the news. She felt more aware of herself than ever, as if a door had been opened inside her or a switch had been hit.

How far would the three of them go? What would they do then? She could not stop asking herself, but always stopped herself before letting her mind go too far.

In Mei's magazines she couldn't find anything useful. Well, at least not in a serious way, outside the "twenty tricks to impress your boy" and those things; things that had filled her with more weird thoughts with the advice that came written on the pages. But none of it helped calm her worries.

What the hell was she doing? She was getting too distracted and she was sure that sooner or later it would affect her grades. And that could not happen. If her grades go down, she'd lose the scholarship; and if she loses the scholarship, she would have to leave Ouran. She could not leave.

She wobbled slightly when she stumbled over a small stone, ironically giving her even yet another reason to stop this nonsense. She had been distracted while walking home and she had almost fallen on her face

Then she realized that she was standing in front of a bookstore near her house and looked over the newspapers and magazines they sold until her eyes stopped in a particular magazine. On the cover there was an image of two boys and a girl with the phrase that said: " _When couples are three. Polyamory, are we biologically programmed to love several people at the same time?"_

Obviously that attracted her attention and she walked to the stope to look closely, as if she had imagined everything and wanted to verify that it was real. But no, it was really there.

"Miss, do you want something?" said the kind lady standing behind the counter. Haruhi took out some coins and pointed to the magazine in question.

"This one, please."

When she got home she ran to her room to read the entire article, eager to know what kind of answers she would get there. Maybe they were not so strange... Maybe there would be more cases like them, people who had known what to do in this situation. Maybe, they had a future after all.

She was so absorbed on her reading that before she realized, her father had just arrived and she had not prepared dinner. She apologized and began to make the food, her body lighter than ever now that she had what she had been craving to know.

It was not that she did not find answers, it was that she was looking in the wrong place.

And like this she knew that she was ready to tell her father. The twins agreed and went to her house one afternoon after school to tell him. Ranka didn't have to work that day, so they had fun together and did "commoners' stuff". When the time came a few hours later and they were quiet having tea, Haruhi took advantage of a silence while her father took a sip of tea to look at the boys and nodded.

"Dad …" he looked up from his cup of tea and looked surprised by the tone of seriousness. "We have to tell you something."

Ranka froze in place, the cup abandoned and cooling on the table. He looked at his Haruhi a few long seconds and nodded silently imagining what it might be. Sure it had something to do with the club, but why were there only the demonic twins?

No, it had to be something only of the three of them. Something ...

No! Not his little girl! Surely those damned fools wanted to separate her from his side forever; sure they had done something wrong ...

He frowned, but chose to listen before going into dad-rampage.

"Ranka-san," said the twins at the same time. "We have not told you before because we did not find the right moment, but please keep in mind that this is not a joke or anything that we take lightly.

"We have a reputation for not wanting anything seriously, for not taking anything seriously -"

" - But believe us when we tell you that this time it's not like that."

"Ranka-san, we love Haruhi," they ended up saying at the same time again, "and we're dating her. Both of us."

Ranka, if she was already stone, now felt how her body was crumbling like sand carried by the wind. What did all this mean? His first impulse was to lash out and beat them until they fainted or lost their memory, whatever came first; but his daughter's face stopped him.

There in the middle of the two, he saw her eyes. Her big brown eyes full of decision, of love, of determination. Love towards him, of course, much like the one he had for her; but there were to those two boys. Two. He smiled mentally. His little girl was growing, not only because of the boyfriends (although that could not help but bother him), but because he could see that she was sure of this decision and that she was going to fight for it.

Although at first what he wanted above everything in the world was to throw himself at the necks of the boys who wanted to take her away from his side and suffocate them to death, Ranka restrained herself and smiled for his daughter. She _so_ much like her mother.

"I understand," he said in a calm voice. One of his eyebrows twitched, making it clear to those before him that he was not happy at all even if he was trying. "And I will allow ... this. Haruhi, I trust your criteria and I know you can deal with any trouble that might come." His strong persona broke and the tearful Ranka that they knew so well appeared, putting his hands on Haruhi's shoulder. "How much have you grown ... "

She returned his gaze and smiled, nodding slightly. Ranka closed his eyes and sighed.

"Hikaru, Kaoru," both tensed. "If for whatever reason you make _my little girl_ cry, feel uncomfortable or hurt in any way and at any level…!" He was raising the tone more and more. "You can prepare for the worst!"

Now he _did_ throw himself at them over the table and hit them on the head as a small sample of what he would really do given the case.

* * *

"Haruhi," she peeled her face from the magazine she was reading. It was the same one he had bought the other time, but it was a another issue. It brought very interesting articles of curious things - things she enjoyed and was willing to waste studying time for. "You look different."

She blinked without understanding what her boyfriend Kaoru was saying. She cocked her head and asked:

"How so?"

"I do not know …"

"Less clueless?" tried to help her other boyfriend, Hikaru. The comment might have annoyed her once upon a time, but she knew they meant it as she seemed more focused. She smiled slightly.

"No, that's not it" she said, packing the magazine in her purse and getting up to leave the cute café where they were having something sweet that Saturday. "I just answered a few questions that had been bothering me."

The others looked at her without understanding, but they let it go. They had already paid, so they went down the street to continue spending the day together on this date.

Almost without realizing it, Haruhi took from the hand of the twin who was on her right side while she felt the arm of the one on her left find its place around her waist. She felt more secure when she could feel the two of them near her. She felt more complete.

She remembered the answers to which she talked about earlier, the questions she answered that day when she read the article on polyamory. "A relationship between three people is based on trust, dialogue and mutual love." "A relationship in which there is no room for jealousy, in which they trust each other". "A relationship beyond the sexual and the physical."

She took a deep breath. This was a definition she felt comfortable with. She no longer felt pressured, like if something was expected of her. As if it was expected that she would behave like a crazed, hormoned _girl_ like those on TV when they got a boyfriend. Or like the ones on Mei's magazines.

She just had to be herself, she just shouldn't have to change.


End file.
